Gym Etiquette and Sociability: Co-Authored by Christopher Smith
Flicking down my Twitter feed, I was caught on the iron-grin humour of a friend’s comment about his experiences in the gym – notably, those inexplicable fluctuations of energy, which carry such pleasure and such pain.
“Some mornings the gym feels good, some mornings it feels like attempted murder. If I don’t make it through the day, tell my wife I said ‘hi.'”
It made me pause, not only to chuckle in sympathy, but to reassess my reaction to his words. I first mistook his meaning for the atmosphere of (any) fitness environment, which – from personal experience spanning a decade, and several locations – is highly mutable in itself. Some days, the gym floor is soft with the faint tinge of music and light, while the chink of weights set back into their cradles is reminiscent of glasses laid out on a pristine table-cloth. Exercise is a peaceful endeavour, and I can retreat inside myself to become a single point of light in sifting darkness.
On other occasions, the music blares across the floor like a rainbow sluice of paint from upended pots; the machines are in full throttle, and the cacophony mingles with the thrum of voices and feet. The air is thick with sweat and bad manners. Some meat axe, having decided to commandeer half the rack of free weights, will leave a heap of dumbbells scattered across the floor like oversized Christmas baubles.
Me: “Can I borrow one?”
M.A: “I’m just about to do another set.”
Me: “How about this one?”
M.A: “I’m using that in a minute, too.”
Me: “….”
Image: http://www.pacificoceanfitness.com
The conversation that followed on from Chris’s initial tweet, wove an interesting thread of thoughts around subjects like public-area etiquette (particularly in the context of fitness health and safety), and exercise sociability v.s. solitariness. Chris told me of his active participation with other gym users, as a source of mental and emotional stimulus:
“Five years ago, I was one of the usual folks who has a gym membership that they paid for with good intentions but never used. My wife told me that I needed to start using it or we were going to stop paying for it… At work that day, I mentioned at the lunch table that I was planning to start going to the YMCA after work to just walk 2 miles on their track. One of the guys I worked with, who I didn’t know very well, said ‘I have a membership too that I never use, I’ll go with you.’ That’s how it started.”
What struck me, was the catalysing effect of company – the offer of this, from an acquaintance known only by work-association – on Chris’s decision to make exercise a regular feature. This was not always the case:
“I grew up pretty sedentary – never much of a sports player, besides paintball (which I didn’t get into until I was 16 or so anyway), so exercise has never been a regular part of my routine. Even paintball would be a burst of weekend activity, but nothing for the other 5 – 6 days.”
Incorporating a fitness programme into a daily / weekly schedule, can make exercise as easily accessible (and acceptable) as driving to work, or sitting for a meal. One of the main reasons people cite for skipping the gym / avoiding exercise, is lack of time; digging a little deeper, it seems that a sense of guilt for putting personal health and well-being before the needs of others, is a crucial point when it comes to taking steps for setting aside “me” time. However, factoring in the additional commitment of company (e.g. a gym buddy or track partner) with a regular time-slot, sees the chances of exercise falling by the wayside decrease; while the physical and mental benefits become more apparent, if social stimuli generates an energy boost.
Image: http://www.athletesgps.com
Exercise is not only about progressive physical fitness, after all – it’s the release of endorphins, during and after a workout, which are the body’s way of giving us a positivity kick:
“Improved self-esteem is a key psychological benefit of regular physical activity… These endorphins interact with the receptors in your brain that reduce your perception of pain. Endorphins also trigger a positive feeling in the body, similar to that of morphine. For example, the feeling that follows a run or workout is often described as ‘euphoric.’ That feeling, known as a ‘runner’s high,’ can be accompanied by a positive and energizing outlook on life.”
Chris found this to be true, once he had committed time to exercising with his colleague – though it is arguably through the realization of willpower, the achievement of fitness levels previously thought to be unattainable, which saw him take the most from this initial change in lifestyle:
“We started by just walking two miles a day, but after a while, Andrew decided we should start running. I hesitated at first, but the track at the YMCA is long enough that 12 laps is equal to one mile, and he suggested we start by running two laps. I didn’t think I could do it, but I did…and he kept pressing me. ‘Let’s do four this week,’ he’d say, and as much as I doubted I could do it I would reluctantly agree… The ecstasy I felt the first time I jogged 1/2 of a mile was amazing. I still remember it. That is something I never in my life thought I’d be able to do.”
Regular exercise is particularly beneficial for individuals suffering with depression and anxiety caused by obsessive compulsive disorder. In my case, it was the presence of anorexia nervosa, as well as OCD, which prompted my GP to issue a referral for my local fitness centre in June 2004. This provided a means of monitoring my (hyper) exercise habit, which was an acute symptom of the eating disorder for purging calories, and was often conducted in secret.
I was by that point an outpatient, with the still-frayed state of mind that demands stability, and craves routine. While the doctor’s decision might sound odd (my mother certainly thought so), the logic ran that – since I had always led an active lifestyle, and would continue to do so (most likely by excessive and surreptitious means) – I should be given the chance to prove myself responsible in a formal setting, under the eyes of qualified staff. Having completed my “allotted time” each day, I would then (theoretically) feel comfortable enough to relax, and focus on other activities. Pivotal to this decision was the maintenance of a healthy weight, to sustain mental cognition and emotional stability, and my continuation of outpatient therapy. Should I choose to let anorexia do the talking, and take advantage of the freedom given back, then my gym membership would be revoked and that outpatient status reviewed by my psych team. These terms were non-negotiable.
Of course, nothing is ever as easy as it looks on paper. The very nature of anorexia is that it will take an inch to run a mile. The real turning point came in 2008, when I took my first full-time job since leaving hospital. As a full-time member of staff in a health spa and gym, I now stood on the other side of the glass, with an insight to both formal training and fitness management. Team members were privy to the usual perks that subsidise such work: unlimited access to facilities, and eligibility to attend promotional training courses. These included Level 2 Fitness Instructor and Level 3 Personal Training, with the option to branch out into more career-based training such as Spin Class and Aqua Fitness.
Image: http://www.visionfitnessacademy.com
In July 2009, I took part in a fast-track Fitness Instructor course based in London. The experience proved to be a lifesaver. Returning to work, I found that exercise had become less about perfecting self-destruction with each session, and more about progression of the self as a whole. With weight gain and therapy had come the inevitable rise of memories and emotional fluctuations, which could no more be sidelined in favour of daily hard exercise routines, than I could cut off my own arm. I also had a developing relationship to think about, to make time for. This meant skipping solitary gym sessions, breaking out of OCD routines, and eating and drinking outside of my ‘safe’ environs.
With each relocation (I’ve moved around a fair bit since 2009) and new gym membership, I’ve made a point of giving staff some context, in a rough outline of my past-and-present mental health status. I am exercising on their premises, after all; should I push too hard in any activity, and pass out due to (for example) low blood sugar, the consequences will certainly affect others.
This is not only relevant to my condition: a recent study has further explored the theory that more exerciseis not necessarily beneficial for the heart, and that an “upper limit” might exist for those who are prone to heart conditions, or who exercise at a high-frequency / intensity. Exercise addiction has its own ream of dangers, particularly in conjunction with an eating disorder; but anyone can be vulnerable to injuries incurred through inadequate rest and/or over-training muscle groups, as well as depression, limited appetite, and decreased illness immunity.
Image: http://www.the-fitness-doc.blogspot.com
All this being said, there is a “comfort blanket” mentality to using the gym, which has kept me in a good place for some time. I still dream of one day owning a house with a basement gym – if only to play my choice of music, and avoid other’s sweat – but there is the lingering thread of wary precaution against returning to exercise that is out of the public eye. The allure of an addiction is that you are never quite aware of its presence until it’s too late to care, and I still hold a fear of crossing back into those bad old days of not staying still until bedtime.
Though I no longer work in a fitness environment, the mentality still carries over; it has the double-edged influence of allowing me to spot a potential accident before it happens … while feeling my hackles rise at the sight of a staff member using a machine as a couch, to text / call on their phone. It makes me feel a bit invasive, not to mention snippy; but I can’t get along with the “sloppiness” of this image, when staff – while not employed to be performing monkeys – are hired on the basis of their accessibility, as well as their knowledge of health and fitness.
Good gym etiquette doesn’t cost much. It’s the little things – pausing to pick up a scrap of paper towel dropped on the floor, reporting a water spillage to staff (or mopping it up yourself) – that make the difference. It’s about being aware of how bloody heavy those weights are before attempting a lift (and knowing how to do so safely in the first place), balancing this against awareness of the physical proximity of others. It may well be the alternative to someone spending time in hospital after they’ve tripped over a barbell, or caught an infection from someone who has decided to come to the gym when they’re down and out with the ‘flu. The disinfectant wipes placed at strategic points across the gym floor, particularly in “heavy sweat” areas like aerobic stations (treadmills, cross-trainers etc), are a must-use. If dispensers are empty, don’t be afraid to approach a member of staff for more. Those little sweaty angel-wings might testify to a good workout … but they’re also off-putting for the next gym member to come along.
On the subject of hygiene – Chris told me of finding signs stuck upon the mirrors of his own gym, asking members to not spit upon the glass. Exercise is, by its nature, rather vigorous, and projectile saliva can be an unfortunate side effect when pedalling at Mac 3, or running down the last mile on the clock. That being said, the average gym layout tends to position machines at a fair enough distance from all glass panels, for safety reasons. So it’s either an impressive range, or someone has an acute aversion to their own reflection.
Sanitary items were an occasional occupational hazard of my old job in that health spa. First thing in the morning, on an inspection of the female changing rooms, I’d find used/unused items left on the floor tiles. Since sanitary bins were in evidence by the toilet stalls, I can only assume that convenience was the pretext for such actions. I know I’ve wished my own ovaries a thousand miles away on more than one occasion, but have yet to take such an overt stand against the curse of womanhood. Maybe I’m missing a trick.
One aspect of gym etiquette which I enjoy (covertly) watching, is the sociability between new and old members. In the free weights section, it’s not unusual to see a veteran offer to spot for a newcomer; a bridge of trust is formed between two people who are testing both the fitness and self-awareness of the other. Between the sweat-strain of reps, the schadenfreude-shine of grins, and not-so-soft sounds reminiscent of a farm yard, there runs a cunning weave of words to pull together a unique form of companionship found in exercise. Rivalry seems to have a lot to say in the matter; of particular interest are the couples who, on a joint membership, egg each other on to greater efforts, gleefully setting weights higher and ratcheting up the speed of a treadmill, to watch their partner’s face turn pink. The way some words are crossed with knives, I imagine it’s all for the benefit of the other, as well as personal health.
Image: http://www.gettyimages.com
A change in routine is necessary to combat exercise-stagnancy, and the dreaded plateau. While the afore-mentioned regularity of a fitness program keeps exercise at the forefront of the mind, it can also create a complacent attitude:
“What I discovered is that exercising in the morning is awesome. Brad is a pillar of consistency – he had gone for the previous year by himself, though when he started exercising regularly he had an exercise partner as well. I drastically changed my workout routine to match up with what he was doing, and this is where I discovered that I have a love of freeweights and different lifting techniques.”
Exercising at an unfamiliar time of the day, and with a new companion, Chris broke out of his comfort zone by pushing against personal physical and mental “boundaries.” Had he stuck with only the familiar routine of running – an activity he admitted he was not overly keen on – there is the chance that he would not have made progress:
“Andrew loved running, and while I certainly didn’t (and don’t) love running, it felt good to be able to do it. It was also during this time that he and I both started getting complacent. You saw me mention that we were running it three-or-more times per week; that’s because we both started getting lazy. We were comfortable enough with one another that on days when we were both tired, we would decide to skip the run, or just do something “lazy” at the gym.”
Of significant importance when engaging in exercise, is to find an activity and/or routine that does not feel like exercise, but is closer to forming a strong pyramid of physical, emotional and mental stimulation. It must be both sustainable and dynamic – something to be enjoyed, adjusted accordingly when a certain level becomes too easy, that no more benefits are being made.
To leave the gym barely standing was once the daily target (I still wonder now how I made it through A Levels), and if even a scrap of energy remained, I had not done my work well. What eluded me – and still does, from time to time – was the sheer pleasure of feeling my body work as I wish it to. I danced ballet as a child, and those were times when I felt quicksilver with life, fluid and keen – proud of my appearance, as something alive and alert, symbolic of both strength and grace. If any concern for imperfection was felt, it was based more upon choreography than calories burnt.
Image: http://www.favim.com
Movement, for its own sake. For all my strict expectations, each gym session is not a foregone conclusion, but an achievement in itself. The fact that I – and others – have turned up at all, should not be overlooked.
I wonder now whether the reason for my doing so, is rooted in a continuation of this perceived idea of exercise-solitude. For all that I workout alone in the gym, I can guarantee being greeted by name at the front desk, while other members will take the time to initiate conversation with me as well as each other. Out in town, we exchange the gym equivalent of the “biker’s nod,” where a name might prove elusive but the face is indelibly familiar.
Along with the obvious physical benefits, it’s the positive social aspects of exercise which need taking into consideration, for a balanced lifestyle.
“The morning employees greet us by name, and at times when I’ve missed a few days, I always have people asking where I’ve been… With better physical health comes better mental health. It’s nice to feel a sense of belonging at the YMCA, with the morning crowd; that same feeling you get when you see friends you haven’t seen in a while? That’s the little shot-in-the-arm I get, every time I step through the doors and am greeted by some employees or other regulars. I start my day with physical activity, which gets the blood flowing and the brain working hard. I really find it worthwhile for the better sense of well-being, overall.”
Image: http://www.imacwallpapers.com
Special thanks to Chris for his insight, help, and limitless patience. Chris can be followed on Twitter at @Reckoner67
Going the extra mile: Life with Anorexia Athletica
With parents who had both served in the RAF, I spent my early childhood accustomed to a spotless house and routine lifestyle. This may not be the case in every such military household, but it was standard practise in mine to meet expectations fairly sharpish. We visited outlying family members each weekend when living in the UK, and spent holidays in the north with my Ma’s side, in Cheshire. Yet each situation would find me traipsing off at some point, to be alone, when the colours of each voice got too bright and the company too claustrophobic. I loved them all dearly, but there is always a need to be silent and still when irritation begins to itch behind the eyes. This generally meant hiding behind a floor-length curtain with a book, or clambering up a tree in the green-black woods surrounding my paternal Nanna’s home, or beating a path over the gorse and purple heather on the moors.
To be alone, was to dictate my moods and follow my own thoughts. For the most part, I was left to it – better this than to deal with a fractious and hyperactive child. From my first year to around age 9, I had suffered with universal eczema, and was hospitalized with red-raw skin while we were stationed in Germany. The bandages wound about my fists had not been protection enough; my nails sought out the ant-sting itch that seemed to go as far down as my bones. But for all that – or perhaps because of that – I was lively, over-eager to get into everything, and drove my parents to distraction with the energy of about three children rolled into one. It got to the point where, for fear I would never sleep at night (though nursery school would find me curled up and sparko on the reading-carpet), my poor mother was advised by the doctor to give me a mild sedative around bedtime. Anything to keep me calm, so that the frail skin under my bandages would heal.
Wandering off down the heat-cracked pavements, I didn’t give a thought to leaving a note behind for my parents; besides, I couldn’t write much English at the time. This absent-mindedness went on well into double-digits, until I grew old enough to care about such things as consequences, and other people’s feelings.
But until that point, there were mugs left on my windowsill with old apple cores stuck inside, and books strewn across my bedroom floor. There were midnight-wanderings with no shoes on my feet, to leave dark trails of mud and mulch on the carpet with my return. When asked to help with housework, or to wash up, or to get my homework in on time, I simply rolled my eyes and – as with most things that involve responsibility – wandered away.
Retrospect is a bitch.
Then came my parent’s divorce, and the breakdown of our family unit. Long silences, which weighed out heavy as tarpaulin full of rainwater. My ignorant behaviour became more than just an irritant, then. I will never forgive myself for making the already-fractured lives of my family, that much more difficult. As it was, something dark was crawling out of my mind.
Solitude became isolation.
Creative flare became stagnant silence.
Running for pleasure became training to die.
I turned in on myself, full of hate and guilt for the things I had done (or more comparably, not done). Each moment I was awake and alive, was spent going to every conceivable length to make amends to people … Or so I told myself, and keep on telling myself.
When an anorexic cooks for people, she will not feed herself. She will appear to be catering for the needs of others, while simultaneously denying herself nourishment. “Some persons with eating disorders may get vicarious pleasure from watching others eat, and enjoy being in control while others give in to the fattening foods.”
Whatever symptoms of anorexia nervosa and anorexia athletica – its compulsive-exercise counterpart – are made apparent, their instigation seems to stem from the same source: a desperate cry for order and control, in the face of chaos, emotions which cannot be expressed in words, or trauma. I cannot speak for every sufferer, but I was well aware – even while being admitted as an inpatient – that with the push-pull of Self vs. the Illness, I wanted someone else to take the reins for a bit; to take the onus off me. If I was forced back to health with the threat of being sectioned, I could (reluctantly) cede, and tell myself / the eating disorder, that I’d had no choice.
Then again, there was still the hot-eyed denial.
“Leave me alone. I’m doing just fine. I’m being healthy – isn’t that what everyone wants, to eat well and exercise? Stop trying to control my life.”
Always, other people’s opinions mattered more than my own.
***
Twelve years down the line, I am slowly extracting myself from the obsessions and neurosis that had fed into the cycle of subsequent compulsions, which in turn had strung up my life on an exhausting loop of starvation and over-exercising. To be perfect wasn’t really the goal; only to be strong, to put up a decent image of mental and physical independence, with the parallel hope that if I trained hard enough no one would want (or be able) to hurt me again. To block out all emotions, meant I didn’t have to give a damn about anyone or anything; the paradox of this being, I cared all the more with every kilo lost, so that the obsessive cleaning and silently-passive behaviour, were my compensation for the shitty attitude of my teens.
I would take that 20-year old by the hand now, and tell her that every adolescent acts up. But I still don’t think I would believe myself. We would end up laughing at each other, with a hollow sound.
I knew a girl on one inpatient ward who, when not required to, would not move an inch. She reluctantly joined us at the dining table, crawling through each meal and snack, until our spines were rigid. The system worked with peer pressure – a calorie drink would be issued to anyone did not or could not finish eating within a set period of time. While this may seem severe, it was essential for regulating the fear that was trying to grind us all down, and to re-teach us how to eat at what may be deemed an appropriate pace, before the food got too cold and was wasted. Aside from this habit, the girl engaged in no more behaviours that might “buck the system.” But to try to get her out on a group walk, or into any kind of physical therapy, was a wasted cause; she would curl into a ball and hide. The same thing tended to happen when she was called upon to express an opinion, on pretty much anything. She was a living shadow, a restrictive type of anorexic.
I was, on the other hand, what the doctor called a “purging type” – which basically means, I restricted calories but also used methods to be rid of them. In this case, exercise came to the fore – and believe me, I played that “I was hyper as a child!” card, as well as “But exercise is good for you!”
Which is true. But, as with anything, too much activity can be a bad thing, whether an individual has an eating disorder or not. Top athletes may work through sustained injuries, only to lose out in competitions due to lack of rest.
Put into the context of an eating disorder, compulsive exercise can be deadly. Which is why I find it startling that the illness is not yet recognized by mental health standards, considering its prevalence among athletes who engage in sports that necessitate a small body / lightweight frame. Training is bloody hard work – so is competition. I once danced ballet, and am well aware of the pressure to stay linear, to appear at once made of steel wires and seashell. To stay in control of racing thoughts, to quell any emotional reaction that might get in the way, I have always resorted to exercise.
That girl was, perhaps on a subconscious level, taking back control in whatever way was available to her, while steadily refusing to lift her voice. I was told by one member of staff that I ought to take notes from her, since it was usually my heels heard thrumming up and down on the thin carpets, pacing away the calories that were supposed to make me well. In practising this illicit exercise, I prolonged my stay on the ward. I wasn’t ready to relax my guard, to admit that the exercise I deemed “healthy”, might actually be doing more harm than good. For a person of well mind and body, such levels of activity would be a positive thing – but I simply couldn’t see my own fragile state. I thought the government guidelines for daily levels of activity in adults, should apply to me too – and then some.
I couldn’t understand how that girl managed to stay so still while so full of food, as I was; with a racing heart and shaking hands, full of (what seemed to me) useless energy, that might well have gone towards a bloody hard run outside. It was for this reason that I was taken off of group walks, and put onto 15-minute checks. My blood results kept coming back with low glycogen and haemoglobin levels – all relating to a low weight, in conjunction with compulsive exercise. The staff tried to keep me alive, while I systematically tore my room apart in a blue-black rage.
Now, twelve years down the line and with a broader perspective of health and experience, I think I know where that girl was coming from, and why the staff were so desperate to keep me still.
Anorexia Athletica – or Hypergymnasia / Compulsive Exercise Disorder, as it is sometimes known – occurs when an individual participates in levels of exercise that may be deemed excessive in light of its effect on social, physical and emotional aspects of life. When a woman takes an evening spin class in favour of sitting before the TV, this is a positive move away from a sedentary lifestyle – particularly if she has been inactive during the day.
But if the same woman takes a spin class in conjunction with not eating enough calories to fuel the exercise and as part of a rigorous training program / in favour of socializing / because she feels “fat/lazy” without the activity, then there are underlying problems, based upon a negative cycle of thoughts —> obsessions –> compulsions.
Post-hospital, my GP referred me to a local sports club to build back up my bone mineral density, skeletal muscle strength and cardiovascular health – though the latter wasn’t such a priority, since it would involve aerobic activities that tend to promote weight-loss, as opposed to the lean-muscle gains he wanted me to make with anaerobic exercise.
My mother was horrified.
“Surely that’s the worst kind of environment for you?”
She may have been right, at least in the early days. I was still fiercely competitive, and watched other gym-goers with the burning eyes of one who knows she can – must – do better. I abused the control that had been handed back to me, by over-training on just about every machine available. Unable to sustain the calorie intake prescribed while on the ward, my weight dropped, and with it my mental health. I stopped attending outpatient therapy, since I was determined to do things “my way” this time … and couldn’t conceive of the fact that what I was doing was in fact, wrong.
Needless to say, the fitness staff and my GP soon amended my view, and took a very stern hand. I was faced with a) Quitting the gym and the A Levels I had recently returned to, and going back on the inpatient ward or b) Listening to staff, and allowing them to take control by plotting out a very basic training programme, aimed at weight gain with the use of resistance machines – while keeping me well away from the treadmills and cross-trainers.
I conceded.
A few years later, working in a health spa, I was sent on a free course for training as a fitness instructor. I had no intention of taking such a role, but the experience proved to be of incalculable value for someone in my situation. I was given the chance to come at the obsessive-compulsions and rigid ideas surrounding exercise, from an entirely different angle. The course focused on the figurative dissembling and reassembling of the human body; on a four-day fast track, we learned the names of every single bone and muscle, their connections to one another and relevant exercises to work them to optimum strength; as well as finding constructive ways to balance mental, emotional and physical health (breaking this down to relationships, employment, leisure time, etc.) It was the equivalent of taking a clock apart to see how each part of the mechanism works, before putting it all back together and listening to the familiar ticking, with an awareness of what to do should something go wrong inside.
If seeing the DEXA scan results of my spine while in hospital was a tap on the shoulder, then that course was a kick up the backside, to keep going. I finally twigged what I was doing to my body – to the bones, muscles and internal organs. The knowledge frightened me, and broke another of anorexia’s chains.
However – there are still restraints. I am not completely in the clear. The crunch-point always comes when I try to take back control by refusing the voice in my head, if I wish to engage in other activities (socializing, dining out, writing.) It’s then that the Panic Button is pressed, with attacks of this kind never a fun experience. The results are invariably worse when there is an external force involved; then, my mind will go into a white-out lock-down. The blinkers will go on, and I become irrationally angry, frightened and desperate for escape.
I once elbowed my way out of a conference, because the press of bodies around me – the sound of all those voices – was too cloying. It felt as though my movements were being restricted, and I had to get out.
This is the reason why, since hospital, I have refused every job that does not involve some physical activity – the livelier and more structured, the better. Weight-training appeals to me on the same basis – the force of the movement vs. the control it takes to lift and lower smoothly, appeals to my nature. However, this does mean that I have put on weight. I must confess to you all that I am terrified, every time I look in a mirror and see this evolved adult form. It feels as though I have lost control; as though I have “given in”, though to who or to what, I couldn’t tell you.
But on the flipside, I am thinking more clearly than has been possible for over a decade. I’m writing this confession down in an article which, among others, I would not have dared to put into print. Not even for the fear of other’s opinions, but for the fear that anorexia would somehow “punish” me.
Now, I have creative sparks that give the same dizzying rush as completing a decent run.
I can wake on a golden Sunday morning, and not immediately leap out of bed to go and do Whatever. Lie-ins are a revelation.
And I have known love.
I wouldn’t have any of these things, had I not gained weight and recovered my health. That being said, it’s also essential for anyone in recovery to have therapy run in tangent with weight gain, to offset the inevitable mood swings and to provide a vocal outlet, as opposed to a physical one. Which is one of the reasons why I have gone back, after ten years without speaking to a professional about what is going on inside.
Still, there is that last wraith of the illness, hovering over my future with its sunken sullen eyes, and a malevolent whisper.
You’ll be unhealthy, if you slacken off the exercise.
Look at all the muscle gains you’ve made (oh it’s cunning, isn’t it) – do you want to see that turn into fat?
But why does it all have to be so black and white?
It never has an answer to that.
My world now, the world of a synaesthete (this too has become more apparent, with improved mental health), is alive and vivid. It is populated with people, some of whom I care for and who care about me; others who couldn’t give a damn, and that’s fine too. I don’t need to please them, or to gain their attention.
There are days, usually after insomniac nights, when I am plagued by self-doubt and the need for reassurance, for someone else to take the reins. Other times, I am red-black with anger and fear, after someone has overstepped a mark and seemingly taken more from me than they deserve –
A look
A word
A hand on my shoulder.
Get. Away. From. Me.
But as a male friend recently brought to my attention, not everyone is out to get me. There are lives, experiences and emotions behind every word and action. A look may not be a leer. A word could be something other than flirtation or slander. A brief touch, is not immediately a desire to control my movements.
Which is what it all comes back to, I suppose. The sexual abuse in my teens, changed me in ways I am only now starting to realize, let alone understand.
But he was right, and I was humbled by his mild words. This passive-aggression is exhausting (adrenalin only runs so far), and is by turns infuriating, upsetting and off-putting for others. Now, with the new therapist, I’m working towards being less reactive, while simultaneously trying to break the last rigid routines around exercise compulsions. I want to try different careers, perhaps to work in foreign politics; to travel, to see the world as I dreamed I would in childhood, when things were so much easier. When wandering off down a sun-struck Mercy Street, veering off the beaten track of humanity and following cats around corners, was as natural to me as blinking, breathing.
To trust everyone at first glance would be a mistake. But to constantly prejudge people based upon personal experiences, would be a far worse outcome. My hope is that if I start laying off on myself about things that cannot be changed, then perhaps I’ll ease up on others, too.
Which is where I’d like to leave you all, with this thought: Where does the buck stop? When do we start taking responsibility for our own thoughts, actions and reactions? The obsessive-compulsive cycle cannot be based upon the future, because it is stuck in the mad rush of instant relief – before the fear comes creeping back in.
Recognizing the problem and asking for help, are the first steps forward. The rest is your own open road.
celenagaia 